TSO-wesome

Last evening Brian, Jen and I saw Trans-Siberian Orchestra perform at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee; my gift to them for Christmas this year. Having seen them once before with my folks I had a good idea of what to expect from the show.

It was truly awesome. I had enjoyed the show the first time, but this time was even better. For the opening portion of the show they performed their "Christmas Eve and Other Stories" story/album which happens to be my favorite of their three Christmas albums. Following this and the introduction of the many members of the group they went into a mixed set including Clapton's "Layla", Carmina Burana "O Fortuna", several pieces from their other albums and "Don't Fear the Reaper" by Blue Oyster Cult led, live, by Buck Dharma of that band.

The music is only part of the show. During the opening story there is a narrator with a captivating deep bass voice and some acting for some of the songs. Throughout the show the lights and effects are an integral part of the experience from multicolored stage lights, laser lights, flames, smoke and sparklers every part of the 80's rock experience is included timed with the music. It's a feast for the eyes as well as the ears. I would suggest that if you are prone to visual migraine headaches or seizures that this is not a show for you.

Of the number of performers that I have seen in concert, this is one act whose albums are good but are not done justice until experienced live. The sheer emotional rush of feeling the music in your bones in a way that no 5.1 Surround system can ever do is almost overwhelming for me at the height of several pieces. It is truly amazing.

If you have the chance to see them live next season go for it. Their three-hour show is well worth the price of admission.

Christmas and Football

Merry Christmas and Happy Festivus.

My "gift" to my dad and brother was to take them to see the Lions play the Bears on Sunday at Ford Field. Once again the Lions pulled defeat from the jaws of victory not that it would have really achieved anything either way. Detroit fans all over frequently debate how to fix the Lions. My answer, see the Saints rebuilding before this season. The only hard part is arranging a hurricane hitting Detroit....

The last pro game I had been to before Sunday was the 2005 Packers/Vikings NFC Wild Card game at Lambeau Field. This experience begs comparison to the overall experience Sunday.

First: Parking. In Green Bay, most of the area that the stadium is in is fairly nice and the out lots are usually business parking lots manned by non-profit groups (e.g. Boy Scout Troops). In Detroit there are either the overpriced privately owned lots near the stadium or the random vacant lots in neighborhoods of burned out and run down homes manned by homeless folks who are taking cash to watch your car. With all of the financial issues the city has wouldn't it make sense to reclaim those lots, convert them to parking and rake in the cash during both baseball and football season.

Second: Tailgating. In Green Bay the entire city is a tailgate party. Detroit? Tailgating, what's that?

Third: the stadium. Detroit wins hands down. Seats versus benches; roof versus open air, heat versus wind vortex. Yes, I like to be comfortable while I watch the game. Apparently it's macho to freeze while cheering on your team. Is this just compensation for not being tough enough to play????

Fourth: Fans. Green Bay religion. Detroit shame and perverse pride. Either way it's like the weather, always a topic of discussion. The Bears fans (of which there were many) Sunday were much more into it than the Detroit fans. Even when they were leading there was the feeling of impending doom.

Final: Tie. The experience in Green Bay is richer, but Detroit is still my team.

Outside of the Lions, the Cowboys collapse on Christmas was interesting. Why couldn't Garcia play that well in Detroit? Who will fire TO? The guy may have been a great player, but with this season's play (how many drops that hit him in the hands or chest?) and the continuing thuggish commentary and antics ("no matter how much you hate me I love me more") he's not worth the money for any team.

My call for the Super Bowl is Chargers vs. Saints. Brees being my choice for MVP this season.

On the fantasy side, I ended up in fifth of six just behind my supervisor and Brian won it all after coming from way behind and as fourth seed. Next year will be fun, I'm sure.

Until I write again.

Sounds Interesting, Then Again, No

As I mentioned in my last post, our management team is in the process of a major restructuring that included two openings in program/finance slots. If you're surprised that I threw my name in the hat to fill one of the slots, well, no one here was. I did end up with the last comment on it when I pulled my name from contention.

Why did I do that? Interesting question, really. I was the first to get an interview set and was sent the job description and supporting information and spent several days with little sleep at night going over the idea and felt that it was worth pursuing. Wednesday morning I interviewed with Ed and got about halfway through the interview when I realized that things just didn't feel right. When my gut talks, I try to listen. After the interview concluded I had an agonizing mental debate while driving through the rolling brown hills of December in Wisconsin. Why didn't this feel right? Before making a final decision to withdraw my name, I talked with my mom, Eric and Brian and was greatly appreciative of their support in my decision to do so. Without going into huge detail on the fine points, I decided that it was not right on several points both personal and professional. On the personal side, I have been getting myself on a better track with how I spend my resources and recognized several potential places to meet people outside of work--my greatest disappointment in living here is not having any new friends outside of the workplace. On the professional side I realized that my work isn't done. While we will make Quality District officially by Friday, it will be by the skin of our teeth and with some considerations by the chief. Not being immodest, this train was not likely to stay on track if I left conducting it now. I have the utmost faith in Brian and my key leaders, but I have not given them enough tools to carry on just yet. With those and several other items in mind, I realized I am not done in this duty yet. I also realized that I don't want my next job to be one where I don't work with managing a team again. While Brian is the extent of my paid team here, I feel more fulfilled helping someone else achieve their professional potential than just about anything else. I've decided I want my supervisors job when she is up for promotion in a year and told her so.

One upside of this was realizing that others agreed with this assessment especially when I let them know what I decided and there was a sigh of relief. In the last week the most profound comment I felt was in my Christmas card from Brian thanking me for the leadership I have provided this year. I've said before that I don't always need recognition, but that comment came at about the best time it could have. I realized that I have not done all I can do here and want to spend the next year doing just that and also sowing what we've reaped over the last two years. Over the holidays I need to assess in some detail where I feel we are and where we are going and hit the new year charging forward.

Before I go, here's the other events of the week:

• Lost my bid for the playoffs in my fantasy league to Brian. My WR and RB corps let me down again and even Brees' stellar performance couldn't rescue the week. We did cause some gnashing of teeth when I dropped Brees and Brian picked him up with the idea that it would give him a better chance and winning the whole thing in a come-from-behind season (he's entering the playoffs with a 6-7-1 record).
• Worked two more Toys for Tots events. I didn't help people shop at either, instead it was like giving a used-car salesman spiel while families walked in. I think it was worth it and it certainly helps families and the council. One side product was getting to know Nate, our recently returned Reservist from the district south of me, better after working with him for 8 hours between the two events. With him on board, the south team is at full strength and it's with good people.
• Wished Nick from our staff farewell as he returns to Sioux Falls for a new job. That adds a new stop on the westward bound route for this summer.
• Saw "We Are Marshall" in the smallest theater I've been in in a long time. I think my living room is larger (no joke). It was on one of the screens nationally showing it as a sneak preview. The movie itself was good. I had tears in my eyes at several points in the film. I'd call it worth seeing.

I'll be back to MI late on Friday the 22nd, but I will be leaving again on the 27th to return to WI. On the 28th I'm taking Brian and his wife to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra as their Christmas gift for this year. I'm pumped about seeing them again.

Until I write again.

It Snows then it Rains

Yes, I'm still alive and still busy. Yes, we've had snow twice already. First was the popcorn-screwing up snow storm with 5 inches. Two Fridays ago we caught the northern edge of the storm that spanked the Midwest and ended up with 8 inches of snow in 3 hours or so. The first real cold weather followed with several days last week in the low teens for highs and near zero at night. Not fun. This week is supposed to be in the 40's with rain. Even better.

In other happenings:

• I attended the first Frat Pack meeting at Lakeland. It was fun, but the most entertaining part of the night was afterwards when I was waiting for a meeting that was to follow. One of the frat guys found me sitting in uniform with a group of girls sitting in the student center in front of the TV with "One Tree Hill" on the screen. His look was priceless. It wasn't as good as it sounded since the girls were students I've taught and I was actually playing Tetris on my phone not watching TV (How can one watch "One Tree Hill"....).
• I did the vast majority of my Christmas shopping in about a half-hour at the Fox River Mall in Appleton the night before the snow storm. It comes close to a new record, but it is easier considering that several gifts were tickets to events that I purchased on line.
• There have been a number of management team changes here at our office besides the new Director of Field Service. His previous job, Director of Finance Service, has been rolled into the Director of Support Service job roughly doubling his job. He is now in the spot of looking to fill two spots on his team. His team will be unique in that it will do both finance and program with a balance between the two in all assignments in the department.
• We are so close to Quality District that I can taste it. We need a small number of Boy Scouts to make it and we're quickly running out of options but I still feel confident that we will succeed. That's not bad at all considering how bad things were when I got here.
• My fantasy team's shot at the playoffs is being decided as I type in the New Orleans-Cowboys game with four of my players being in it. It will be darn close. The part that kind of sucks is that I am playing Brian for the spot. If I win that's it, if he wins our records are tied and he wins on points scored in the season. That tie in our last match-up screwed it up. Either way I learned a lot this season that I can use for next season. We won't discuss the Pick 'Em league...that's going south quickly.
• The council Christmas party was Friday night in Appleton. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. It was a Casino night with Texas Hold 'Em, Blackjack and Craps there to be played with fake money. I played Hold ' Em for a while and spent the rest of the time watching other play and drink. My supervisor was well toasted by the end of the evening. By the time I got home it was after 1:30am.
• This leads to the next morning when Brian and I worked a Toys for Tots toy distribution center with the goal of inviting new youth to join Scouting for free as a Christmas gift. We recruited 3 kids, but spent a lot more time helping people chose toys for their kids. The person welcoming the folks took a special joy in having me help out families with all girls where I am no help at all. She swore it was educational for me. There were a lot of parents there who did not speak any English at all. That was a special challenge. Suffice it to say I was exhausted by the time I got home after being on my feet for 8 hours on three hours of sleep that followed a very busy couple of days. I was out cold on my recliner a half hour after I got home.
• Last, for now, I decorated my living room for Christmas today and got my gifts completed and wrapped. It doesn't quite seem like Christmas yet, but I'm trying to get there. Brian and I are doing our gift exchange tomorrow and I'm looking forward to giving him his gift which I'll explain in my next post.

Until I post again.